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Summary

It's ironic that in a world where metroidvania games have never been mover popular, the two series that gave the genre its name are somewhat in the doldrums. The Metroid series, for its part, hasn't had an entry in the traditional style since 2010's Other M, and that wasn't exactly a beloved entry for the series. The very title of Samus Returns, however, is a statement of intent to get back to the heroine's roots.

It helps that this is a remake of the classic 2D sidescroller Metroid II. Yes, it's classic side-on exploration and adventure. There's not too much messing around with story here - Samus must hunt and destroy the last of the metroids (flying jellyfish-type things that transform others into monsters) on her home world. The real star here is level design. It's non-linear, with elevators and fast teleports speeding you around an impressively large game world. You're limited not by artificial constraints but by what you can unlock with your tools and abilities. Be careful, or you might end up stumbling into something you're not ready for!

The upgrades you earn are all important. While this is a remake of Samus's second outing, it does introduce a few abilities from later games and even one or two of its own, so powers range from the classic morph ball and the wall-crawling spider ball to the modern addition of a stick-controlled 360 degree aim function.

Castlevania might not be returning any time soon, but Nintendo will take you back to the metroidvania genre's roots with Samus Returns.